Final Fantasy IV
Jared reviews Final Fantasy IV, a great starting point to the franchise, despite its fake out story. Synopsis Jared explains the story of how Final Fantasy IV was released. Because North America never got Final Fantasy IV, they named it Final Fantasy II. It created confusion that some people still don't understand until this day. Final Fantasy IV is a favorite of fans. It was also ridiculous with weird plot moments, an abnormal amount of spoons. Jared makes a segway to move into a Blue Apron ad read. Jared has kept all of their previous recipes. Final Fantasy IV has a classic opening that gives the original tune a melody. It would have been even more powerful for Japanese players who played all the first three games beforehand. The main characters are introduced in one of the best introductions in the series. A flashback of the last mission Cecil completed. Jared makes his four elements joke while showing Final Fantasy I. Cecil and Kain have to deliver a message. The intro sets up the game with incredible music, and real characters with real personalities and struggles. Final Fantasy II barely dipped its toe into this. This is one of the first games to really tell a story with real relationships. All the previous games feel generic compared to this one. It also improved the gameplay. The gameplay was very slow for casual players. Active Time Battles were introduced. Jared describes the real time mechanics. Thinking ahead and making quick decisions are rewarded. This mechanic worked so well that it was used for six Final Fantasy games in a row. It added a level of strategy. Jared shows himself making mistakes. There were interesting boss battles in this game. Previously, boss battles were hard due to the number of hit points, or having to do something specific to win. In 4, some bosses would change their forms and have different weaknesses. Several encounters would heal each other, or hit hard, making it important to realize which member to hit. Each team member has a different ability. One of them has an ability called 'Peep' to spy on enemies - which doesn't sound right. And the bard can get out of the party! There was a bigger variety of character abilities. This was the most fun game of the first four, but it is stupidly easy. It is a easy game for babies. The North American version was dumbed down. The special character abilities were removed because they were too complex. Enemy attacks are ineffective and bosses are a joke that do barely any damage at all. No grinding is necessary, so there's that. The Japanese original has the full experience. The version we got, is the reason why Jared didn't like this game so much growing up. This game allows Jared to play another game on his GameBoy SP at the same time. The soundtrack is very good, and Jared lists some of the standout themes. There are some of the best boss battle soundtracks in the game. The boss theme gets a shout-out. There is a real story here with real dialogue and defines relationships between the characters - mostly. There wasn't anything like this before. It was like playing a movie! There was so much drama, plot twists, betrayals. It was groundbreaking for its time. The story is really stupid, despite being revolutionary. A lot of the events are forced and don't have impact. Rydia has her mother killed and her village was burned to the ground. She refuses to use fire spells due to this. Rydia's journey allows her to get over her fear due to peer pressure. Edward the bard was a prince mourning his lover. He is then told to get over it, so he does. Cecil becomes a paladin. All of his development stops 1/5th of the way through the game. His girlfriend is a plot device the whole game. Ed the ninja doesn't join in until half way through the game. He is cocky, and hits on Rydia all the time, is shitty towards everyone, dabs and sucks. There is a set of dark crystals of the elements. The moon has its own set of eight crystals! There are 17 total crystals! No running gag could prepare Jared for this! A hand crawls, and Jared demands the party stop him, and is frustrated when nobody stops him. Jared lists some of the stupid text that appears such as yelling 'Achooo' or Kain celebrating without being in the party. Everything is a fake out, and it loses its impact very quickly. Kain betrays you twice! Just kidding, he was mind controlled! Jared is confused about how Yang dies, but just kidding, he is fine! Everyone dies, only to come back just fine! There is also a bigger eviler guy that shows up for no reason, and another crystal - now 18 - appears. The whole story is overly tropey. Jared liked it far more than he ever has before. It has had a large impact on fans. Jared doesn't love it though. It is a steaming pile of shit - just kidding! A fake out out of ten! Everything has a big flaw that reveals itself quickly. There is a lot of drama, memorable characters, memorable moments, iconic scenes and music. It isn't the strongest example, but it is here and represented well enough. When it came out, it had a huge impact on gaming before. Despite the issues that Jared had with it, this game is a great starting point for people playing Final Fantasy for the first time. It is easy, adds the Active Time Mechanic that other Final Fantasy systems use, and even though it is stupid, has an easy to follow plot. The PSP version is the best with better sprites, music and more to do. Jared suggests avoiding the PS2 version, as the loading is bad. The 3D remake for the DS is devisive, due to the artstyle. This is Jared's favorite part of the game with new things added, and more character development and voice acting. The plot is filled with stupid still, and it is one of the hardest Final Fantasy games Jared has played. Jared played this version alongside the original. That version is now on Steam. Final Fantasy IV is still worth playing til this day. It is a huge improvement on the previous games, and sets it up for future games. You will finally understand all of the spoon jokes! Jared has a good idea. He throws the spoon at his shelf. It ends up going behind the back, and he won't get it back! Category:ProReview Category:Videos